Adolescent girls face alarming rates of intimate partner violence

Among adolescent girls who have been in a relationship, almost a quarter (24%) – close to 19 million – will experience physical and/or sexually intimate partner violence by the age of 20, as pointed out new analysis World Health Organization (WHO) published today in The Lancet Child and Adolescent Health. Almost 1 in 6 (16%) experienced such violence in the last year.

“Intimate partner violence starts alarmingly early for millions of young women around the world,” said Dr Pascale Allotey, Director of WHO's Division of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research. “Given that violence during these critical formative years can cause profound and lasting harm, it needs to be taken more seriously as a public health issue – with a focus on prevention and targeted support.”

Intimate partner violence can have devastating consequences on young people's health, educational attainment, future relationships and life prospects. From a health perspective, it increases the likelihood of injuries, depression, anxiety disorders, unplanned pregnancies, sexually transmitted infections and many other physical and psychological conditions.

High rates of violence against adolescent girls reflect deep-seated inequalities

This study draws on existing data to provide, for the first time, a detailed analysis of the prevalence of physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence experienced by girls aged 15 to 19 who were in intimate relationships. It also identifies wider social, economic and cultural factors that increase their risks.

Although violence against adolescent girls occurs everywhere, the authors highlight significant differences in prevalence. According to WHO estimates, the most severely affected regions are Oceania (47%) and Central Sub-Saharan Africa (40%), while the lowest rates are in Central Europe (10%) and Central Asia (11%). There is also a significant range between countries: from an estimated 6% of adolescent girls exposed to such violence in the least affected countries, to 49% in those with the highest rates.

A new analysis found that intimate partner violence against adolescent girls is most common in lower-income countries and regions, places where fewer girls are in high school and where girls have weaker legal rights to property ownership and inheritance compared to men. Child marriage (before the age of 18) significantly increases the risks, as age differences between spouses create power imbalances, economic dependence and social isolation – all of which increase the likelihood of suffering abuse.

Adolescent girls need targeted services and support

The study highlights the urgent need to strengthen support services and early prevention measures adapted to adolescents, along with activities to improve the rights of women and girls – from school programs that educate boys and girls about healthy relationships and violence prevention, to legal protection and economic empowerment. Because many adolescents do not have their own financial resources, they may face special challenges in leaving abusive relationships.

“The study shows that to end gender-based violence, countries must have policies and programs that increase equality for women and girls,” said study author Dr. Lynnmarie Sardinha, Technical Officer for Data and Measurement of Violence Against Women at WHO. “This means ensuring secondary education for all girls, ensuring gender-equal property rights and ending harmful practices like child marriage, which are often underpinned by the same unjust gender norms that perpetuate violence against women and girls.”

Currently, no country is on track to eliminate violence against women and girls by the 2030 Sustainable Development Goal target date. Ending child marriage – which affects 1 in 5 girls worldwide – and expanding girls' access to secondary education will be key factors in reducing intimate partner violence against adolescent girls. .

WHO supports countries in measuring and addressing violence against women, including efforts to strengthen prevention and response within the health care sector. New WHO guidelines on preventing child marriage are planned to be published by the end of 2024.

Notes for editors

Study, Intimate partner violence against adolescent girls: regional and national prevalence estimates and associated country-level factors, analyzes both lifetime prevalence and prevalence during the last 12 months of physical and/or sexual partner violence against girls aged 15 to 19. Other types of violence, including psychological violence, are not included due to the lack of an agreed internationally comparable measure.

Uses WHO data Global database on the incidence of violence against women, published in 2018, which draws on data collected between 2000 and 2018 from 161 countries. Bayesian hierarchical modeling methods were used to obtain internationally comparable estimates between countries.

This study was funded by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office through the Joint WHO-UN Women Program on Strengthening Data on Violence against Women and the United Nations Special Program for Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction (HRP).

Link to the article: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanchi/article/PIIS2352-4642(24)00145-7/puni tekst